Barrack Street Upgrade

Overview

As part of the Urban Forest Plan Infill Street Tree Planting Program, the City of Perth has designed and installed a range of innovative and bespoke water retention tree pits across the city.

Each pit is designed to capture and filter stormwater run off from city streets to improve water quality and promote a sustainable approach to water management within the urban forest.

The pits help deliver additional water to our street trees. This promotes the development of large and healthy tree canopies which cool the city and creates green, shaded and attractive city streets.

Design Details

• These pits were previously installed in premier city streets with high quality paving and granite kerbs.
• During and after a rain event, openings in the granite kerb capture stormwater run off from the adjacent road surface. This water is delivered via a pipe system to the top of the tree. The soil and tree roots then help to filter and clean the stormwater before it enters the City’s drainage system.
• In areas of high pedestrian traffic a stainless steel water harvesting tree grate is installed over the top of the tree pit. These protect the tree from damage and help to maximise footpath space for other street users.

This design is no longer used in the city due to:

• high installation costs
• problems with debris blocking the openings in the granite kerb and higher maintenance costs
• delivery of stormwater to the top of the tree rather than the base of the rootball
• the requirement to dig a deeper tree pit to accommodate pipe system with greater potential for conflict with existing underground services.

Contact Officer: Barbara Meldrum

Email: Barbara.meldrum@cityofperth.wa.gov.au